Avoid being swallowed by the fish!

How to avoid being swallowed by the fish?

One of the books of the Bible that many are reluctant to accept is Jonah.

Why? Skeptics insist that the story of Jonah cannot be true. Impossible!! How can a man survive that ordeal? First of all, they forget God’s power; and second, they reject the evidence of similar cases.

- Here is one: This picture is of a Navy diver that was almost swallowed by a fish.

If you can believe the following picture (snake swallowing a croc), I do not see why not believe the story of Jonah.

Last week, we learned some lessons from this passage. Today, we’ll learn some more.

If you do not want to be swallowed by the fish...

Go in the direction that God points to.

“Go to Nineveh…and cry against it.. But Jonah rose up to flee to Tarshish…So he went down to Joppa, found a ship which was going to Tarshish, paid the fare and went down into it...” 2-3

See map and describe

Escaping from God is impossible.

How foolish we are thinking that we can escape from Him. We forget the words of the psalmist:

“Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me.” (Psalm 139:7–10)

Did you notice who sent the storm? v. 4 It was God himself!

Was God pretending to destroy him and the sailors? No! As a father, He wanted to correct the path His child was taking.

The Lord sends storms into our life when we are heading in opposite direction to the direction He has pointed to. The storm will serve to stop you from destruction.

Your disobedience will bring suffering to others.

“The ship was about to break up.” 4

The ship did not belong to Jonah, but it was about to be destroyed due to his sin.

Most people think they can do whatever they want with their life, but they do not realize the pain and suffering their sin bring to those close to us.

“Tell us, now! On whose account has this calamity struck us?” 8

Sin is like a wave that affects the surroundings! The sailors did not have anything to do with Jonah, but their lives were in danger due to his sin.

Our sin will bring pain and suffering to our family, close relatives, our church, our friends, and Christ’s cause.

God knows the best path to destination.

God is not like the GPS that gives you alternate routes. You’ll never hear from God that annoying word “Recalculando…”

His directions are always perfect and accurate. If you follow them, you’ll get to destination on time and without incidents.

But if you go in the opposite direction, the storms will be waiting for you. The waves of sin will shake you to make you react.

Don’t try to get away with murder.

“Each man said to his mate, ‘come, let us cast lots so we may learn on whose account this calamity has struck us.’ So they cast lot and the lot fell on Jonah.” 7

Luck? No! Coincidence? No!

You cannot hide your sin forever.

“He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion.” (Proverbs 28:13)

We may hide our sins for some time; we may deceive many, but not all; but God sees it all. Nathanael was surprised when he met Jesus and Jesus said, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit”:

“Nathanael said to Him, “How do You know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” Nathanael answered Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.”” (John 1:48–49, NASB95)

I wonder what Nathanael was doing under the tree? He assumed that no one could see him, but he forgot that God does. Jonah forgot it too!

You cannot hide sour sin either; and you’ll be discovered when you least expect it.

When the sailor found Jonah sleeping, they were not looking for him! They went down to the hold to see of what cargo they could get rid of; but they found him. 5-6

The hold was in the low part of the ship. It was kind of hidden, but the captain found him there.

Ironically, in his desperation, the captain, an unbeliever asks a sinning believer to pray. Observe that Jonah did not pray for them! How could Jonah do it? With what face?

You cannot mock God.

Casting lots is a common practice of pagans and unbelievers. What was the probability that the winning cast would fall on Jonah? If there were 50 sailors: 1/50 = 2%. But it fell on Jonah! Coincidence? NO!!! No one can mock God!

Remember Achan?... What were the chances? If we assume that only those 100,000 attacked Jericho, the probability of finding the culprit would be 1/100,000 or 0.001%

That’s like buying a lottery ticket and expecting to win!

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.” (Gal 6:7)

Do not wait the suffering to come to God.

“And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights. Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the stomach of the fish, and he said, ‘I called out of my distress to the Lord and He answered me.” 1:17- 2:2

He could have repented before the punishment! But no! He waited to suffer first!

Accept your responsibility before punishment comes.

“Pick me up and throw me into the sea. Then the sea will become calm for you, for I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you,” 1:12

If you wait until the last moment, the punishment will be worst!

Why do you think criminals prefer to accept the DA’s offer? “Plead guilty and will give x number of years. If we go to jury we’ll seek 3x that number of years or the death penalty.”

Why do we wait until we are discovered? Because we think we can get away with murder and because we think we are smarter than God.

Jonah waited until the last moment and was swallowed by the fish!

Why waiting for an accident, a cancer, a divorce, or being in financial troubles to accept our responsibility?

Confess to God and start obeying Him.

It was on the fish’s belly that Jonah broke down and repented.

Suffering and troubles are fertile soils for prayer. Hospitals and jails are witnesses to many conversions!

Thru his prayer, Jonah was making peace with God.

He had understood how foolish is to fight with God. You lose all the time! You will not win even a round!

Your repentance and confession will reestablish you communion with God and you will have peace. There’s nothing better than to know that you are at peace with God.

Repent and confess and God will start blessing your life!

By following God’s direction, your obedience will also be of blessing to many. Thousands were saved when Jonah did what God had sent him to do: Preach to the lost!